Grinding methods and apparatus

ABSTRACT

The time to grind a workpiece can be reduced by selecting a grinding wheel whose width is not substantially greater than wheel strength considerations require, and which may therefore be less than the axial length of the region to be ground providing a work rest or work steady to increase the workpiece stiffness if required, and performing a succession of plunge grinding steps so as to grind the whole of the said axial region. Typically the grinding wheel is an electroplated CBN wheel, and the width of the grinding wheel selected is the narrowest permissible given the desired feed rate and motive power available. A grinding machine is disclosed comprising a wheelhead having mounted thereon a grinding wheel whose width is not substantially greater than that dictated by structural and strength requirements, programmable indexing means to enable the relative positions of the wheelhead and workpiece to be adjusted in a sequence of steps to achieve a sequence of plunge grinds, which may or may not overlap, to enable a region of the workpiece to be ground, the axial extent of which is greater than the width of the wheel, and wheel feed means and control means by which the feed rate is controlled, whereby the wheel feed rate is similarly programmable to enable a feed rate to be achieved which is limited only by the peak and RMS power capabilities of the wheel spindle drive motor, so that the rate of material removal is as high as is compatible with the power capabilities of the machine during each plunge, thereby optimising the total cycle time for grinding.

FIELD OF INVENTION

This invention concerns grinding methods and machines particularlytechniques and modifications by which grinding efficiency can beimproved.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Removal of metal from a workpiece to define a ground region of a givenaxial length and diameter can be achieved by plunge grinding using awheel whose width is equal to the axial length of the region to beground, or by using a narrower wheel and progressively removing thematerial from the workpiece by axially traversing the workpiece relativeto the wheel (or vice versa), or by using the narrow wheel andperforming a series of adjacent slightly overlapping plunge grinds.

All other things being equal, and providing unlimited power isavailable, overall cycle time (ie the time from the initial engagementof the wheel and the workpiece to final disengagement after the regionhas been ground to size), will be least where a single wheel and singleplunge is involved, although the need to regularly dress the wheel willincrease the total machining time for a batch of workpieces to somethingin excess of the theoretical overall time.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the present invention a method of optimisingthe grinding of a workpiece comprises the step of selecting a grindingwheel whose width is no larger than wheel strength considerationsrequire and which may therefore be less than the axial length of theregion of the ground providing a work rest or work steady if required toincrease the workpiece stiffness and performing a succession of two ormore plunge grinding steps so as to grind the whole of the said region.

In general it has been found that with conventional electroplated CBNgrinding wheels, grinding efficiency increases as grinding wheelthickness is reduced, and structural strength of the wheel and/orworkpiece stiffness will normally prevent a truly optimum solution to beobtained. However in terms of cycle time, surprisingly, the feed rateswhich can be achieved within a given motive power capability when usingthe narrowest permissible wheel and multiple plunge grinds with axialindexing, can still be significantly less than the cycle time when usinga single wheel of sufficient width to permit the whole axial extent ofthe region to be ground with a single plunge grind.

The invention also lies in a method of grinding an axial region of aworkpiece using a grinding wheel whose width is not substantiallygreater than that dictated by structural and strength requirements,mounted on a wheelhead, comprising the steps of programming wheelheadand/or workpiece indexing drive means to enable the relative positionsof the wheelhead and workpiece to be adjusted in a sequence of steps toachieve a sequence of plunge grinds, which may or may not overlap, toenable the said axial region of the workpiece to be ground, the axialextent of the said axial region being greater than the width of thewheel, programming a computer based machine control system to generatecontrol signals for controlling the rate of wheel feed during grindingdependent on feedback signals during grinding, and entering data intodat stores associated with the control system relating to maximuminstantaneous and RMS power of the wheel spindle drive motor, andcontrolling the wheel feed rate by the control system to enable a feedrate to be achieved limited only by the peak and RMS power capabilitiesof the wheel spindle drive motor, so that the rate of material removalis as high as is compatible with the power capabilities of the machineduring each plunge, thereby optimising the total cycle time forgrinding, wherein the feedback signals enable each of the instantaneous,and RMS, wheel spindle motor power, to be calculated as grindingprogresses.

The invention also lies in a method as aforesaid wherein the wheel feedprogramming includes the steps of inputting parameters such as grindingwheel material, workpiece material, workpiece cutting speed, coolantcomposition, grinding wheel feed per workpiece revolution limit, maximuminstantaneous and RMS wheel spindle drive motor power, and grindingwheel cutting speed.

The method may include the step of gauging the diameter of the workpieceduring or after grinding. Information relating to the diameter may besupplied to a controlling computer and the workpiece speed of rotationmay be adjusted in dependent on the gauged diameter.

The invention also lies in methods as aforesaid wherein the plungegrinds are performed using the same wheel.

The invention also lies in methods as aforesaid wherein the plungegrinds are performed using two or more wheels.

The invention generally envisages that each wheel is used in turn sothat only one wheel is engaging the workpiece at any time but wherepower capability exists, two or more of the wheels may be engagedsimultaneously.

The invention is of particular application in the grinding of workpieceregions which contain annular shoulders at one or both ends of theregion, with or without an undercut or radius adjacent one, or both,shoulders.

According to another aspect therefore of the invention, a method ofgrinding a region between or to form shoulders comprises the step ofplunge grinding adjacent one of the shoulders using a wheel whose widthis less than the axial distance required there-between, indexing andplunge grinding adjacent the other shoulders with the same grindingwheel, and thereafter removing any unground material remaining betweenthe two shoulders by performing one or more plunge grind steps withappropriate indexing.

Where a single additional plunge grind is needed to remove ungroundmaterial, the indexing preferably registers the wheel centrally over theunground sections.

Where two additional plunge grinds are required to remove the ungroundmaterial, the indexing preferably registers the wheel so as to removeapproximately equal widths of the unground material during each of thetwo additional plunge grinds so that uniform wheel wear can be achievedby alternating which of the two parts of the unground region is groundfirst by the additional plunge grinds, as between one workpiece and thenext, when a succession of similar workpieces are to be ground in thisway.

Where three (or more) additional plunge grinds are required, theindexing is preferably such as to present the wheel to the workpiece sothat unground material makes contact with one side of the wheelsubstantially the same number of times in the sequence of additionalplunge grinds as the other side of the wheel is presented with ungroundmaterial.

According to a further aspect of the invention in a method of grinding aworkpiece with a grinding wheel, selected as aforesaid and whose widthis less than the axial extent of the region to be ground, at least oneof the additional plunge grinds required to grind the whole of the saidregion is performed by a second grinding wheel also selected asaforesaid.

This said further aspect of the invention is of particular applicationto the grinding of workpiece regions which have an annular shoulder atat least one end, and which require one or more annular profiles such asundercuts or grooves or annular radial protrusions, to be ground in thesurface of a region using appropriately formed wheel profiles.

Where a single such annular profile is to be formed it is preferablygenerated using a narrow formed grinding wheel (selected as aforesaid)which grinds the annular profile and adjacent parts of said region, andthe remainder of the region is ground using one or more additionalgrinding wheels by an appropriate number of plunge grinds.

Where two such profiles are required, for example one at each end of thesaid region, the grinding may be performed by plunge grinding one endusing a first narrow formed wheel (selected as aforesaid), plungegrinding the other end using a second narrow formed wheel (also selectedas aforesaid) and if any further material remains to be ground betweenthose sections which have been ground by the first and second wheels,grinding the further material by one or more plunge grinds using one ormore plain grinding wheels. By “plain” is meant a cylindrical grindingwheel which is rotated about an axis which is coaxial with the axis ofthe cylindrical grinding surface and the latter when viewed tangentiallyappears flat and plain (ie it possesses the same diameter across thewhole width of the cylindrical grinding surface).

A particularly preferred aspect of the invention is one in which twoundercuts are to be formed adjacent two annular shoulder at oppositeends of a cylindrical region and according to this aspect of theinvention a first grinding wheel having an appropriate formed grindingsurface is engaged with one end of the said region so as to grind theundercut and surface grind part of the adjacent cylindrical surface anda second grinding wheel is employed to grind the other undercut and theremainder of the cylindrical surface between the two undercuts.

The two wheels may have the sane or different widths but in either eventthe total width expressed as the sum of the two widths, should be notless than the total width between the shoulders.

Preferably the sum of the two wheel widths is just greater than theaxial spacing between the two shoulders.

Where the workpiece comprises a crankshaft and the region being groundis a crankpin, typical dimensions are such that the cycle time can besignificantly reduced by using two such wheels, since the axial extentof the pin regions of the cranks is such that the sum of the widths oftwo relatively narrow wheels will still be greater than the axial extentof the pin.

Where full optimisation requires narrower wheels to be used (and suchwheels are still strong enough to be used), this can result in an axialregion being left in the middle of the pin, which then has to be removedby plunge grinding using one or more plain grinding wheels, but theoverall cycle time may still be significantly less than that if a singleformed wheel is used albeit at reduced feed rates to accommodate thepower capabilities of the given grinding machine.

It may be advantageous to use one or more minimum width grinding wheelsand multiple plunge grinds to grind the whole of the cylindrical surfacebetween the shoulders as a first operation and to use a single wideprofiled grinding wheel to grind the two undercuts as a secondoperation, the diameter of the wide grinding wheel being such that itssurface between the two annular profiles which will grind the undercuts,makes no contact with the ground surface between the undercuts (or ismerely used to polish the ground surface during spark-out as thegrinding of the two undercuts is completed and this intermediatecylindrical surface just makes grazing contact with the previouslyground surface between the two undercuts.

In the first said operation the width of the material being ground islimited by the minimum width of the grinding wheel but the cycle timecan be optimised using multiple plunge grinds with high metal removalrates without exceeding the power capability of the grinding machine.During the second operation in which the undercuts are ground, theactual width of grinding wheel which is in contact with the workpiece islimited to the width of the two undercuts, the rest of the wheel merelyserving as a structural support for these two narrow annular profilesaround the wheel. As a consequence, since the intermediate region of theprofiled wheel is not performing any grinding, the effective width ofthe wheel is now the sum of the widths of the two annular profilesproducing the undercuts and again high metal removal rates can beachieved without overloading the power capabilities of the machine.

Where two or more grinding wheels are required to plunge grind andfinish a given region, the wheels may be introduced one after the otherinto the region, or may be located at different positions along agrinding machine bed and the workpiece is indexed so as to present theregion to each of the different wheels at different times. The indexingis preferably controlled so as to present appropriate parts of eachregion to appropriate grinding wheels.

It is often desirable to enable a single grinding machine to be modifiedso as to grind different workpieces. In the case of crankshafts,different crankshafts will typically have different diameters and axiallengths of crankpins and where methods according to the invention areemployed, the use of a single profiled wheel to produce two undercuts,one at each end of each crankpin, will require a different formed wheelto be substituted to allow different crankshafts to be ground.

According to a further preferred aspect of the invention, two profiledgrinding wheels may be used in place of a single profiled wheel, each ofwhich includes a cylindrical surface (which may or may not be used inthe grinding process to remove metal) and an annular region of greaterdiameter (referred to as an annular profile), which is intended toengage the ground cylindrical surface and form the undercut therein. Byselecting the narrowest possible width wheels and mounting the wheels ona common shaft, so all the benefits of the aforementioned method can beachieved and alteration of the axial spacing between the undercuts isachieved by simply altering the spacing between the two wheels mountedon the shaft.

In an alternative and preferred arrangement, the wheels are mounted onseparate shafts (which may or may not be driven by the same motor), andone or both of the two shafts are adjustable in position so that theaxial spacing between the two wheels can be altered, thereby adjustingthe distance between the two undercuts to be formed by the two wheels.

Where the wheels are mounted on separate shafts, these may be positionedsuch as to enable both wheels to simultaneously plunge grind the twoundercuts, but it may be more advantageous to locate the two wheels ondifferent wheelheads and index the workpiece (or the wheelhead assembly)so as to grind with first one and then the other of the two profiledgrinding wheels.

Where only two grinding wheels are to be employed, and a range ofadjustment of the spacing between annular profiles is to be optimisedprovided for and ideally made as large as possible, it is probable thatboth of the wheels should have the same width. The minimum spacingbetween the two profiles is then equal to the width of one wheel and themaximum spacing is equal to the sum of the widths of the two wheels, iea range of 2:1.

The invention also lies in apparatus for performing the aforementionedmethods.

In one embodiment, a grinding machine includes a single wheelhead havingmounted thereon a grinding wheel whose width is not substantiallygreater than that dictated by structural and strength requirements, andprogrammable indexing means is provided to enable the relative positionsof the wheelhead and workpiece to be adjusted in a sequence of steps toachieve a sequence of plunge grinds, which may or may not overlap, toenable a region of the workpiece to be ground, the axial extent of whichis greater than the width of the wheel, and the wheel feed means iscontrolled by feed rate control means, wherein the wheel feed rate isprogrammable to enable the feed rate to be increased up to the maximumpermitted given the peak and RMS power capabilities of the wheel spindledrive, so that the rate of material removal is as high as is compatiblewith the power capabilities of the machine during each plunge, therebyoptimising the total cycle time for grinding.

The grinding machine aforesaid may further comprise means for gaugingthe diameter of the workpiece during, or after, grinding and means forgenerating an electrical signal indicative of the diameter for supply tothe computer based control system.

The invention also provides a machine as aforesaid when programmed so asto achieve the said optimal cycle time.

The wheel feed programming capability preferably includes adjustable butessentially preset parameters such as maximum motor power and RMS motorpower, and other parameters such as grinding wheel material, workpiecematerial and workpiece condition (ie current wheel diameter) can beinserted by the operator.

Workpiece condition can be maintained and the process further optimisedby sensing the wheel diameter (which reduces as the wheel becomes worn),and adjusting not only wheel feed but also wheel feed rate to takeaccount of the increasingly smaller diameter as the wheel becomes worn.The invention envisages a machine as aforesaid when fitted with wheeldiameter sensing means and feedback control means for adjusting thewheel feed are wheel feed rate accordingly.

Since rate of cooling achieved by coolant may also be an importantfactor, a signal may also be generated for and means provided,responsive thereto for controlling the coolant fluid pump so that thelatter is operated at an appropriate level as called for by the expectedmaterial removal rate. Where the overall power for a machine is governedby the combination of coolant fluid pump and wheelhead power, thecomputation of the wheel feed rate preferably includes taking intoaccount the power required for the coolant pump.

In another embodiment of the invention, the grinding machine includestwo narrow grinding wheels mounted on a single spindle for simultaneousengagement with a workpiece to perform plunge grinds at accuratelyspaced apart positions on a workpiece.

According to a further aspect of the invention the grinding machineincludes two narrow wheels mounted on separate spindles, each of whichis mounted for independent movement towards and away from a workpiece.

The two wheels may be mounted at a fixed spacing relative to each other,or may be adjustable in position so that the spacing between the wheels(measured generally parallel to the workpiece axis) can be adjusted.

Adjustment of the axial spacing may be during set-up to allow fordifferent axially spaced regions of a workpiece to be addressed or maybe such as to permit traverse grinding, and/or indexing, to permit asequence of plunge grinds to grind surface.

The invention also lies in apparatus for grinding comprising a firstgrinding wheel having a profiled grinding surface, wheel dressing meansassociated therewith for dressing the grinding wheel as required tomaintain the profile thereon, means for advancing and retracting thefirst grinding wheel towards and away from a workpiece so as to form anannular profile in the grinding surface and optionally to surface grindat least an adjacent region of the workpiece surface, a second grindingwheel mounted independently of the first grinding wheel and adapted tobe brought into engagement with the workpiece to grind an adjacentregion of the workpiece surface within which the profile has been formedby one or more plunge grinds.

The second grinding wheel may also include wheel dressing means.

Where a second profile is to be formed in the workpiece surface a fixeddistance from the first profile and the distance between the profiles isno greater than the combined widths of the two wheels, the secondgrinding wheel may also include a profiled grinding surface so as toform the second desired annular profile in the workpiece surface duringgrinding thereof by the second grinding wheel. By providing forindependent movement of the two grinding wheels, so first one and thenthe other may be brought into grinding contact with the workpiece sothat the full machine power is available for each of the two plungegrinding steps, thus enabling a high rate of material removal to beachieved.

Where the axial extent of the workpiece surface which is to be ground isgreater than the sum of the two grinding wheel widths, the secondgrinding wheel may be indexed so as to perform a sequence of plungegrinds assuming that it is not profiled. Where the second wheel is alsoprofiled, the two extreme plunge grinds may be performed leaving anintermediate region to be removed by a third plain grinding wheel whichmay be operated so as to perform a single plunge grind or a sequence ofplunge grinds so as to remove the said intermediate region.

Wherever possible the width of each grinding wheel is selected so as tobe as close as possible to the minimum permitted given strength andrigidity considerations and wheel feed is adjusted so as to therebyoptimise the power available within the machine for grinding and obtainthe maximum rate of material removal for the power and grinding mediumavailable.

The invention will now be described, by way of example, with referenceto the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a conventional plunge grind using a wide wheel;

FIG. 2 shows how a sequence of plunge grinds using a narrow wheel canremove material over the same axial extent as the wider wheel and undersome circumstances obtain a faster grinding time;

FIG. 3 shows a conventional twin profiled grinding wheel for grinding aworkpiece in a plunge grind mode as shown;

FIG. 4 shows has two narrower profiled grinding wheels can be used inaccordance with the invention to grind the same region as the twinprofiled wheel of FIG. 3, and under some circumstances achieve a highergrinding speed;

FIGS. 5A, B and C show how three different grinding wheels each selectedto allow optimal material removal per plunge given a fixed powercapability of the machine, can be used to grind a similar region to thatshown in FIG. 4 but of greater axial extent than is possible using twoprofiled grinding wheels such as in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a computer controlled grinding machinefitted with two independently controllable narrow gauge grinding wheels;and

FIG. 7 is a control system functionality listing showing the data inputsand programme decisions required to achieve optimal material removal perplunge grind.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a conventional plunge grinding technique. Here a grindingwheel 10 is shown aligned with the region 12 of a workpiece 14 which hasbeen ground by plunging the wheel 10 into the workpiece 14 in thedirection of the arrow 16 by a distance equal to the change in radius asbetween the larger diameter 14 and the smaller diameter 12.

If the axial distance between the shoulders at opposite ends of thereduced diameter region 12 is L, then it has hitherto generally beenassumed that the minimum time for grinding is obtained by selecting asingle grinding wheel of width L and performing a single plunge grind.

If unlimited power and infinite workpiece stiffness workpiece andmachine supports etc can be assumed, then this conventional approachwould produce the minimum grinding time. However it has been discoveredthat increasing the wheel width requires disproportionately greaterincreases in power to match the material removable capabilities ofnarrower wheels using the same grinding material, and if unlimited poweris not available, and in particular if the RMS power requirement issignificantly limited, the feed rate achievable, (ie the rate at whichthe wheel 10 is advanced in the direction of arrow 16) reducessignificantly as the wheel width increases. Whilst a greater axiallength of workpiece is addressed by a wider wheel, the volume ofmaterial removed per second can in fact be less than if the same poweris available to drive a narrower wheel.

FIG. 2 illustrates the principle of the invention. Here the grindingwheel 10 is replaced by a narrower grinding wheel 18 the thickness ofwhich is approximately one third that of the wheel 10. A single plungegrind of the wheel 18 will produce a reduced diameter section 20 whichif the feed in the direction of arrow 22 in FIG. 2 is the same as thedistance through which wheel 10 is moved, will result in the same finaldiameter for the region 20 as is the diameter of region 12.

In accordance with the invention, the wheel 18 is now retracted in theopposite direction of arrow 22 and either the wheel or the workpieceindexed (or both) so as to present another region of the workpiece 14for grinding, after which a second plunge grind is performed so as toremove one or other of the regions denoted in dotted outline at 24 and26.

Subsequent indexing allows the remaining region to be removed by a thirdplunge grind.

In order to obtain more uniform wheel wear, regions such as 26 arepreferably plunge ground before region such as 24, so that each of theflat surfaces of the wheel 18 is subjected to the same number ofinteractions with unground material as is the other.

In order to ensure full removal of material, the actual thickness of thewheel 18 should be just greater than one third of the distance L.

By aligning the left hand edge of the wheel 18 with the left hand endposition of the region 20 which is to be ground, the first plunge grindwill remove just over one third of the distance L. By then aligning theright hand edge of the wheel 18 a distance L from the shoulder formed bythe first plunge grind, a second plunge grind will remove material fromthe opposite end of the region 20 over a distance equal to just over onethird of the length L measured from the right hand shoulder. This leavesan annular upstand in the middle which is somewhat less than one third Lin axial extent and is equidistant from each of the two shoulders atopposite ends of the region 20. This annulus of unwanted material canthen be removed by a single plunge grind by centering it and the wheel18 and performing the third plunge grind.

If one of the ends of the region 20 is to be formed with an annularprofile such as an undercut, then a second wheel (not shown) may be usedto perform the plunge grind in the region in which the undercut isrequired, but the other region or regions in which an undercut is notrequired can be removed using a plain grinding wheel such as that shownat 18 in FIG. 2.

Where two undercuts are required such as at opposite ends of a crankpinsuch as shown in FIG. 3, it has been conventional to employ a twinprofiled grinding wheel such as shown at 28 in FIG. 3. A wheel dressingdevice (not shown) is provided to produce and regularlymaintain/reinstate the external peripheral profile of the wheel 28, anda single plunge grind will result in a ground region in the workpiece 14made up of a cylindrical pin surface 30 having a diameter less than thediameter of the adjoining regions of the workpiece 14, with twoundercuts 32 and 34, one at each end between the reduced diameter pin 30and the shoulders 36 and 38. With use, the profile 40 and 42 on thegrinding wheel 28 which produce the undercuts 32 and 34 become worn andit is necessary in practice to frequently re-shape the wheel 28 so as toensure that the correct depth of undercut is achieved.

FIG. 4 shows how the region 30 of FIG. 3 can be ground in accordancewith the invention using two narrower grinding wheels 44 and 46 eachcontaining an edge profile 48 and 50 respectively for grinding anundercut. The method involves plunge grinding using the first grindingwheel 44 so as to grind the first half of a reduced diameter section 54of the workpiece 52, with an undercut 56. The wheel 44 is then withdrawnand by appropriate relative movement, the second wheel 46 is alignedwith the other part of the region to be ground. Using a second plungegrind, the region shown in dotted outline is now ground so as tocomplete the grinding of the region 54, with a second undercut at 58.The width of each of the two grinding wheels 44 and 46 (including theprofiled region 48 and 50 in each case), is just a little in excess of50% of the axial distance between the two shoulders or cheeks left aftergrinding, namely 60 and 62. By ensuring that the sum of the two wheelwidths is just greater than this dimension, there is little risk of anyunground material being left after the second plunge grind by the wheel46.

In fact the two wheels 44 and 46 can be used to grind any region similarto 54 in which the distance between the two shoulders 60 and 62 can beanything between the width of the wider of the two wheels 44 and 46 upto the sum of the widths of the two grinding wheels. In this regard itwill be seen that overlapping the two plain sections of the grindingwheels should not produce any additional unwanted grinding provided thetwo grinding wheels are advanced by the appropriate amount in each case.

If a general purpose machine is to be provided the two grinding wheels44 and 46 should both be of the same width since this will give thegreatest range of dimensions between shoulders 60 and 62.

Using two such wheels as in FIG. 4 may not allow ultimate optimisationof the grinding process, but where the same grinding material isutilised in the two wheels as is used on the single wheel of FIG. 3, theworkpiece is of similar material, the same reduction in diameter andsame axial extent of the workpiece is to be ground, a significant savingin cycle time has been obtained using two wheels to grind, as in FIG. 4,instead of a single wheel 28 as in FIG. 3, when using the same grindingmachine and operating the latter at its maximum peak/and RMS powercapability during each grinding process.

What has been found is that the narrower the wheel such as 44 and 46,the higher is the rate at which the wheel can be fed forward during theplunge grind mode. If the axial length of the region to be ground issuch that half the axial length produces a relatively thick grindingwheel an advantage may be gained by adopting a method and technique suchas shown in FIG. 5. This permits the narrowest possible wheels to beutilised taking into consideration rigidity and wheel strength as wellas power capability. For simplicity the same reference numerals havebeen used to describe the grinding wheels described in relation to FIG.4 and the workpiece is likewise identified by reference numeral 52.

In the FIG. 5 arrangement, a plunge grind using wheel 44 forms theshoulder 60 and the first region 54 with an undercut 56. Retraction andindexing (see FIG. 5B) allows the second grinding wheel 46 to plungegrind the second shoulder 62, and a second part of the reduced diameterregion 54 which in FIG. 5B is denoted by 55. The edge profile on wheel46 produces the second undercut 58. The difference between the FIG. 4and FIG. 5 arrangements is that after the second plunge grind thereexists an annular region 64 between the two regions 54 and 55, theoutside diameter of which is commensurate with that of the workpiece 52.

If no further undercuts are required, neither of the wheels 44 and 46can be used to remove this region.

To this end a third grinding wheel 66 is provided and after appropriateindexing (see FIG. 5(c)) to bring the workpiece region 64 into registrywith the third wheel 66 (either by moving the workpiece relative to thewheel or the wheel relative to the workpiece, or both), the unwantedregion 64 can be removed by plunge grinding using the third wheel 66. Ifthe width of the latter is large enough a single plunge grind suitablylocated relative to the workpiece will remove the annulus of unwantedmaterial 64. If as shown, the region 64 is of greater axial extent thanthe thickness of the wheel 66, two or more plunge grinds will berequired. To even out wear on the wheel 66, the latter is preferablyintroduced in a given sequence which may have to be changed from oneworkpiece to the next. Thus for example the wheel 66 may be introducedat the left hand end of the region 64 first of all, and then the righthand end and then if any material still remains to be removed, it can bebrought in centrally.

If the axial length of the region 64 is excessive, so that four or fiveor even more plunge grinds are required, these are preferably arrangedso that an equal number involve one side and an equal number the otherside of the wheel 66 so as to create a uniform wear pattern.

The invention is of particular application to grinding using CBNelectroplated wheels. The grinding capability of such wheels has notbeen taken full advantage of hitherto. The wheel manufacturers specify amaximum material removal rate and it has been found that rarely is thisrate achieved during grinding. In particular the motor power,particularly the RMS power of the motor driving the grinding wheel,limits the rate at which the wheel can be advanced and material removed.The RMS power capability of a motor is a measure of the continuous powerrequirements for the whole cycle and if the motor RMS powerspecification is exceeded the motor will overheat.

For electroplated wheels, the wheel specification is referred to interms of specific metal removal rate (SMRR) and this is defined as thevolume of metal removed per second, per millimetre wheel width, andforms the basis grinding power calculations. Wheel manufacturers suggestthat the maximum SMRR for electroplate CBN wheels is 360 mm³/mm.s whengrinding cast iron and using neat oil as a coolant. However it is oftenthe case that motor power limitations have limited wheel feed rates sothat actually grinding is in the range 30 to 66 mm³/mm.s. Byincorporating the techniques proposed by the invention, much highergrinding rates than the 30 to 60 rate quoted above can be achieved whichenables feed times to be greatly reduced. By reducing the width of thewheel, more plunges are required but the additional time required forindexing to present the wheel to different regions of, or differentwheels to the workpiece, can be more than offset by the much shortergrinding times required for each plunge grind step.

As one example let us consider a four cylinder crankshaft in which thepins have to be ground from 50 mm to 40 mm, and the pins are each 23 mmwide. A work speed of 30 rpm has been assumed. The motor powerspecification is assumed to be 50 kilowatts maximum peak power and 30kilowatts maximum RMS power.

Using a 23 mm wide wheel, and a single plunge method, the specific metalremoval rate can be found to be 36.9 mm³/mm.s (from a graph of SMRR vsspecific power). Grinding time for the four pins is therefore 4×14 whichequals 56 seconds. The time with the spindle running/coolant on is 5.1seconds.

However to remain within the RMS power requirements of the motor, thefeed rate has been reduced dramatically and the cycle time has to be atleast 131.2 seconds.

Using two 12 mm wide wheels and two separate plunge grinds the specificmetal removal rate for each wheel of 110.7 mm³/mm.s is permissible (fromthe same graph of SMRR vs specific power). The total grinding time isnow 4×2×6 which equals 48 seconds and the time with the spindle runningand coolant is 10.1 seconds.

However in view of the lower RMS power requirements, the feed rate canbe increased and the cycle time is now reduced to 63.3 seconds for thesame maximum RMS power requirement.

It will be seen therefore that the cycle time has been approximatelyhalved using a two-plunge method and the majority of the time saving canbe attributed to the reduction in RMS power requirement since the higherfeed rate during each plunge disproportionately compensates for the needto perform two plunges, and there no increase in cycle time toaccommodate the lower RMS power capability.

FIG. 6 shows a grinding machine 68 having two grinding wheels 70, 72driven by motors 74, 76 and mounted on wheelheads 78, 80 for movementtowards and away from a workpiece 82 along linear tracks 84, 86 underthe control of wheel feed drive motors 88, 90. The workpiece is mountedbetween centres in a tailstock 92 and a headstock 94 which also houses amotor (not shown) for rotating the workpiece 82 via a chuck 96. Theworkpiece shown is a crankshaft of an internal combustion engine andincludes offset crankpins such as 98 which are to be ground to size,each of which constitutes a cylindrical workpiece for grinding.

A computer 100 running a programme to be described, controls theoperation of the machine and inter alia moves the wheelheads 78, 80towards and away from the workpiece 82 as the workpiece rotates, so asto maintain contact between the wheel and the crankpin being ground, asthe latter rotates circularly around the axis of the workpiece centres.

A gauge, not shown, may be carried by the wheelhead assembly forin-process gauging the diameter of the crankpin as it is ground.

At 102 is mounted a hydraulically or pneumatically operated worksteadyhaving a base 104 and movable cantilever arm 106 adapted at the righthand end as shown to engage a cylindrical journal bearing region of thecrankshaft workpiece 82. Controlling signals for advancing andretracting 106 are derived from the computer 100.

At 108 and 110 are mounted two wheel diameter sensing gauges, signalsfrom which are supplied back to the computer 100.

In FIG. 7 the workpiece is described diagrammatically at 110, mountedbetween footstock 112 and headstock 114 which is driven by workdrivemotor 115. The workpiece is engaged by a grinding wheel 118 carried by awheelhead 120 which is moved towards and away from the workpiece 110 byfeed motor 122. The grinding wheel is rotated by a spindle drive motor124.

Input data which is entered by an operator is shown on the left handside of the diagram.

The grinding wheel cutting speed in revs/seconds is entered and storedat 126.

Grinding wheel spindle drive motor mechanism power capability is enteredand stored (as a constant parameter) at 128.

Grinding wheel spindle drive motor maximum RMS power limit is enteredand stored at 130. Again this will tend to be a constant parameter forthe machine.

The maximum wheel feed to be attempted per workpiece revolution, duringgrinding and expressed as a % of the theoretical maximum, is entered andstored at 132.

Details of the coolant composition are entered and stored at 134.

Details of the material from which the grinding wheel is composed areentered and stored at 136.

Details of the workpiece material are entered and stored at 138.

The workpiece cutting speed in min/sec is entered and stored at 140.

From 134, 136 and 138 the specific material rate during grinding incubic mm per m-s, is computed by programme step 142 and the removal rateis supplied to programme step 144 to compute the theoretical grindingwheel feed in mm per workpiece revolution.

Step 146 adjusts this to a lesser value depending on the % figure from132 and using the rotational speed of the workpiece (in revs/second)from programme step 148 the grinding wheel feed rate is computed in step150.

Control unit 152 serves to generate a control signal for motor 122 fromthe feed rate from 150.

The computed rotational speed from 148 is supplied to control unit 154to generate a control signal for motor 146.

The grinding wheel cutting speed signal in rev/sec from 126 is convertedby control unit 156 to a control signal for controlling the spindledrive motor 124, and a torque sensor (not shown) operates a feedbacksignal which is supplied together with the desired cutting speed inrevs/second from 126, programme step 158 which computes the powerrequired to achieve the speed of cutting and the RMS power beingconsumed. The instantaneous and RMS power values are compared with thestored values in 128 and 130 by programme steps 160, 162 and if eitheris exceeded a further reduction in feed rate per revolution is effectedby programme step 146. This in turn reduces the wheel feed rate demandfrom 150 which reduces the demand made on motor 122, thereby reducingthe wheelhead feed rate.

The control signal for motor 154 is obtained from the data in 140 andthe workpiece radius obtained by gauging. Where this radius informationis obtained by in process gauging, it is supplied along path 164 toprogramme step 148 together with the workpiece cutting speed informationfrom 140, to modify the rotational speed control signal to be computedby step 48. In this way workpiece rotational speed is adjusted toaccommodate the changing diameter of the workpiece and the latter isground.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of reducing the time to grind a regionof a workpiece having an axial length, comprising the steps of selectinga grinding wheel whose width is less than the axial length of saidregion and is a narrowest possible given a desired feed rate and anavailable maximum motive power, but being not substantially wider thanis required by wheel strength, causing relative movement between thegrinding wheel and the workpiece and performing at least two plungegrinding steps so as to grind said region, wherein at least two of saidgrinding wheels are provided and the said two at least grinding wheelssimultaneously engage the workpiece for grinding, and performing asuccession of at least two plunge grinding steps so as to grind the saidregion.
 2. A method of grinding a workpiece wherein the wheel isselected in accordance with claim 1 and further comprising performing aplurality of plunge grinding steps with relative axial indexing betweenthe wheel and the workpiece intermediate each plunge grinding step.
 3. Amethod as claimed in claim 1, wherein some of the plunge grinds areperformed using at least one other grinding wheel.
 4. A method asclaimed in claim 3, wherein two of said grinding wheels simultaneouslyengage the workpiece for grinding.
 5. A method of grinding a region of aworkpiece using a grinding wheel whose width is less than the axialextent of the region to be ground, so that more than one plunge grind isrequired to complete the grinding of the region, at least one of theadditional plunge grinds required to completely grind the region beingperformed by a second grinding wheel or said at least two grindingwheels and wherein both wheels are selected using selection criteriarequired by claim
 1. 6. A method of grinding as claimed in claim 5,wherein the workpiece region is cylindrical and is to have an annularshoulder at at least one end, adjacent which is to be ground an annularprofile in the surface of the said region.
 7. A method as claimed inclaim 6, wherein two said annular profiles are to be generated, one ateach end of the said region and the grinding is performed firstly byplunge grinding one end using a first narrow formed wheel, secondly byplunge grinding the other end using a second narrow formed wheel, andany further material remaining to be ground between the ends which havebeen ground by the first and second wheels is removed by at least oneplunge grinds using at least one plain grinding wheel.
 8. A method asclaimed in claim 6, by which two undercuts are formed adjacent twoannular shoulders at opposite ends of the cylindrical region, wherein afirst grinding wheel having an appropriate formed grinding surface isengaged with one end of the said region so as to grind one undercut andsurface grind part of the adjacent cylindrical region, and a secondappropriate formed grinding wheel is engaged with the other end to grindthe other undercut and the remainder of the cylindrical region betweenthe two undercuts.
 9. A method as claimed in claim 6, wherein at leastone minimum width grinding wheel as defined by the criteria of claim 1performs a plurality of plunge grinds to grind the cylindrical regionbetween two shoulders in a first operation, and a profiled grindingwheel is employed to grind two undercuts as a second operation, thewidth of the profiled grinding wheel being not greater than the axialdistance between the two shoulders and the diameter of the profiledgrinding wheel being such that its surface between the two annularprofiles which serve to grind the undercuts, makes no contact with theground surface between the undercuts.
 10. A method as claimed in claim6, wherein during a first operation the width of material being groundis limited by the width of the grinding wheel but the cycle time isoptimised using multiple plunge grinds with high metal removal rates,and during a second operation two undercuts are ground and the actualwidth of grinding wheel which is in contact with the workpiece islimited to the widths of the two annular grinding profiles which formthe two undercuts, the rest of the wheel serving as a structural supportfor the two annular profiles, whereby the effective width of the wheelduring the grinding of the undercuts is the sum as the widths of the twoannular profiles producing the undercuts, whereby high metal removalrates are achieved, without overloading the power capability of themachine.
 11. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the workpiececomprises a crankshaft and the region to be ground is a crankpinthereof.
 12. A grinding machine which includes two narrow grindingwheels each selected in accordance with the size criteria of claim 1mounted on a single spindle for simultaneous engagement with a workpieceto perform plunge grinds at accurately spaced apart positions on theworkpiece.
 13. Apparatus for grinding comprising a first grinding wheelhaving a profiled grinding surface, wheel dressing means associatedtherewith for dressing the grinding wheel as required to maintain theprofile thereon, means for advancing and retracting the first grindingwheel towards and away from a rotatable workpiece so as to form anannular profile in the grinding surface and optionally to surface grindan adjacent region of the workpiece surface, a second grinding wheelmounted independently of the first grinding wheel, and adapted to bebrought into engagement with the workpiece to grind an adjacent regionof the workpiece surface within which the profile has been formed, by atleast one plunge grind, wherein at least one of said grinding wheels isselected in accordance with the criteria of claim
 1. 14. Apparatus asclaimed in claim 13, further comprising a workrest for engaging theworkpiece during grinding, to resist bending of the workpiece under thegrinding forces.
 15. A method of grinding a region of a workpiecebetween first and second shoulders having an axial distancetherebetween, comprising the steps of selecting a grinding wheel whosewidth is less than the axial distance between the shoulders, plungegrinding adjacent one of the shoulders, causing relative axial indexingbetween the wheel and the workpiece, plunge grinding adjacent the othershoulder, and thereafter removing any unground material remainingbetween the two shoulders by performing at least three plunge grindingsteps with appropriate indexing, wherein the indexing is such that oneside of the wheel is presented with unground material substantially thesame number of times in the sequence of additional plunge grinds as isthe other side of the wheel.
 16. A method of grinding an axial region ofa workpiece using a grinding wheel which is rotatable by a drive motorand is mounted on a wheelhead and whose width is not substantiallygreater than that dictated by structural and strength requirements,comprising the steps of programming an indexing drive means of one ofthe wheelhead and the workpiece to enable the relative positions of thewheelhead and workpiece to be adjusted in a sequence of steps to achievea sequence of plunge grinds and enable the said axial region of theworkpiece to be ground, said axial region having an extent greater thanthe width of the wheel, programming a computer based machine controlsystem to generate control signals for controlling the rate of wheelfeedduring grinding dependent on feedback signals during grinding, enteringdata into data stores associated with the control system relating tomaximum instantaneous and RMS power of the drive motor, and controllingthe wheel feed rate by the control system to enable a feed rate to beachieved limited only by peak and RMS power capabilities of the wheelspindle drive motor, so that the rate of material removal is as high asis compatible with the power capabilities of the machine during eachplunge, thereby optimizing the total cycle time for grinding, whereinthe feedback signals enable each of the instantaneous, and RMS, wheelspindle motor power to be calculated as grinding progresses.
 17. Amethod as claimed in claim 16, wherein the wheel feed programmingincludes the steps of inputting parameter comprising at least one ofgrinding wheel material, workpiece material, workpiece cutting speed,coolant composition, grinding wheel feed per workpiece revolution limit,maximum instantaneous and RMS wheel spindle drive motor power, andgrinding wheel cutting speed.
 18. A grinding machine comprising a singlewheelhead having mounted thereon a grinding wheel whose width is notsubstantially greater than that dictated by structural and strengthrequirements, programmable indexing means to enable the relativepositions of the wheelhead and workpiece to be adjusted in a sequence ofsteps to achieve a sequence of plunge grinds, to enable a region of theworkpiece to be ground, the axial extent of which is greater than thewidth of the wheel, wheel feed means, control means by which the feedrate is controlled, and wherein the wheel feed rate is programmable toenable a feed rate to be selected dependent on the peak and RMS powercapabilities of the wheel drive, so that the rate of material removal isas high as is compatible with the power capabilities of the machineduring each plunge, thereby optimising the total cycle time forgrinding.
 19. A machine as claimed in claim 18, wherein the machine isfitted with wheel diameter sensing means and feedback control means foradjusting the wheel feed and wheel feed rate accordingly.